Even though Longo’s main form of self-expression is drawing, sculpture influences his drawing technique. His portraits have a certain chiseled line which seems to give the drawing a three-dimensional look. Longo went on to be known as a leading protagonist of the ‘Pictures Generation’. He has worked on drawing, photography, painting, sculpture, performance, and film to make provocative critiques of the anesthetizing and seductive effects of capitalism, mediatized wars, and the cult of history in the US. The first commercial gallery Metro Pictures which was established in 1980 represented Longo’s work. He gained critical acclaim in 1981 through his first solo show at the Metro, of the famous ‘Men in the Cities’ series. These portrayed men and women dressed in black-and-white, formal business attire, squirming in contorted emotion. In 1984, the gallery showcased his work, which was part sculpture, part relief, part painting. The concepts used in these were of Sergei Eisenstein’s theory of montage to juxtapose conflicting imagery and those based on work of reason, intuition, fantasy, and power. These concepts continue to be a vital form of practice for Robert Longo.
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